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Che Librarp 


of the 
Ciniversity of Worth Carolina 


Collection of sPorth Caroliniana 
Chis book was presented 


by 
MiDIW (Coulee 


Co 364 
IN TS 





JAMES AND FRED 


Being the Case History of Two 
Youths Who Were Arrested 
for Stealing, and Who 
Are Above 


Juvenile Court Age 


(ONE 


1920 
PUBLISHED BY 
STaTE BOARD OF CHARITIES AND PUBLIC WELFARE 
RALgEIGH, N. C. 





REPORT OF COUNTY SUPERINTENDENT 
OF PUBLIC WELFARE 


The investigation in the cases of James and 
Fred is presented for the consideration of the 
County Superintendents of Public Welfare be- 
cause we believe a careful study of the same 
will be helpful-in several ways. 


1. Though this investigation was made for 
the mayor, it is a good example of the informa- 
tion that should be gotten by the probation 
officer when a child comes into the juvenile 


court and placed in the hands of the judge be- | 


fore he makes a disposition of the case. 


2. It shows the clear and simple manner in | 


which such material should be presented to the 


judge, and is arranged in a way to become a 


part of the permanent record of the case. 

3. A way is suggested in which the County 
Superintendent of Public Welfare in his work 
of chief probation officer, co-operating with the 


mayor or other police judge, can give valuable — 
assistance in the cases of children who are over — 


sixteen years of age, but who frequently need 


the remedial care and supervision of probation, 
There is no essential difference between the | 
character of an investigation of the case of a 


child under sixteen, and therefore within the 
jurisdiction of the juvenile court, and a youth 


above sixteen, as in this case, in the jurisdic- 


tion of the adult courts. 


For obvious reasons the names are fictitious 


and the name of the County Superintendent 
omitted. The County Superintendent was as- 
sisted in working up these cases by an expert 
from this office, and the principles involved are 
endorsed by Mrs. Johnson, Director of the Chil- 
dren’s Bureau of this office. 


As case history this material can be criticized | 
as not being verified by the investigator. We | 


have only the boys’ statements of the case, and 
whenever it is possible all information gotten 


in this way should be verified from other | 
sources in order to make a satisfactory case | 


history. R. F.. BEASLEY, 
State Commissioner Public Welfare. 














REPORT OF COUNTY SUPERINTENDENT 
; OF PUBLIC WELFARE 


In THE MATTER OF 
JAMES BURKE AND FRED BROWN 
Report submitted by 


Co. Supt. of Public Welfare 
S1rR:— 
In accordance with your request of recent 
date, I am submitting herewith a report in the 
matter of James Burke and Fred Brown, ar- 
raigned before your Honor on the 19th day of 

_this month, and charged with larceny of suit- 
cases and other things. In accordance with the 
spirit of the intentions of the State of North 
Carolina as expressed by the progressive Legis- 
lature of 1919, which established Juvenile 
Courts and Probation and thereby virtually 
adopted the principle of individual treatment of 
offenders, and in strict adherence to that spirit, 
the following report is made separately for each 
defendant. It is only in respect to the overt act 
and nature of charge that they may be consid- 
ered together. In other respects they are sepa- 
rate persons with separate histories. 


JAMES BURKE 


After the first denial of any knowledge of the 
theft of the suitcases James made a clean and 
full confession, in the course of which he volun- 
tarily admitted other petty larcenies, not known 
to the police. He merely made a clean breast 
of it all. James is not quite 17 years old. He 
was born in Philipe, West Virginia, August 23, 
1903. At six years of age he was taken by his 
parents to Ohio, where his father went into the 

_ business of vulcanizing. The boy was kept in 
school until twelve years of age; at that time 
his father died and his mother married again. 


| 3 


The boy was bright and active and got inter- 
ested in a show that was visiting the town. 
Against the wishes of his mother his step- 
father agreed to have him go on the road with 
“Silas Green’s Show.” The boy stayed with 
Silas Green for about four years, taking part in 
dancing and singing exhibitions during the 
summers and working on and off at vulcanizing 
during the winters. He developed the roaming 
habit inseparable from the life of show people. 
When he left Silas Green about a year ago he 
was receiving a weekly wage of about $22.50.) 
Thereupon he joined show companies in suc- 
cession, first as cook boy, then as fruit vender, 
receiving in the first instance $10 a week and 
maintenance, and in the second instance $18 a 
week with a percentage on sales. He had in- 
jured his hip in the moving of one of the shows. 
and was incapacitated for further development | 
as a dancer and show man, so that the past. 
year’s record shows a down-grade process in) 
respect to occupation and income. 

He quit the show business about three or four 
months ago and for about two months con- 
tinued on odd jobs and looking for permanent 
employment. About this time he began picking 
up things from time to time as his means would | 
give out. There is nothing to indicate that he 
has even at this time as yet developed ‘“pro- 
fessional standards or practices of the under- 
world,’ nor does he seem to have associated 
permanently with thieves and pickpockets with| 
whom he did in fact come in contact at differ- 
ent shows. He was evidently not considered by 
them as of their own cast and was not per- 
mitted to join them when an occasional impulse 
would drive him in that direction. 

James Burke’s acquaintance with Fred Brown 
dates back about six months when they met one 
day by accident. They did not see each other 
again for some four months. Their second meet- 
ing was also accidental, not prearranged. The 
joint undertakings in connection with the theft) 
of the suitcases appear to have been a groping, 
bungling affair of novice type without even ele- 
mentary knowledge of how to dispose of stolen 
goods, which is the first principle of successful 
professional stealing. 











James is bright, active, and has made most 
of his elementary education. He is well grown 
and has a sense of moral responsibility which 
came out again and again in the course of my 
interview with him in a number of ways, as, for 
example, in the instance of his first confessed 
attempt at. stealing when he took the entire 
supply of wooden rings from the booth of a 
showman, thus depriving him of his means of 
running his booth; aware of the predicament 

'of the showman, who could not obtain other 
| rings in town, James voluntarily returned the 
rings. Physically, he is in good condition, as 
shown by physician’s report appended, and his 
history is fairly free of sex complications. 

He says that he knows the vulcanizing busi- 
ness and can easily make a living at it. He 
appears satisfied that the criminal life he was 
about to enter does not pay, either financially 
or otherwise. He has high self-respect and is 
good material to build on. He is proud of a 
good reputation with his fellow showmen. He 
seems in the right state of mind to make an 
effort not only to regain his freedom, but also 
to start an honest life afresh. 


FRED BROWN 


Fred Brown was born October 20, 1903, in 
| aadie een County, North Carolina. His father 
thas been in the sawmill business, and conse- 
|}quently has traveled about with his family dur- 
ling Fred’s entire childhood. His schooling, 
}therefore, was irregular and rarely more than 
j}one year at the same place. He has not devel- 
oped any permanent local or personal ties be- 
cause of the nomadic life that the sawmill 
man’s family necessarily led; nevertheless he 
stayed in school until about twelve years of 
age, and for the following four years or so as- 
sisted his father at his work. The crisis in the 
boy’s life occurred when his mother died some 
itime ago and his family began to break up. He 
‘has two older sisters married, a younger sister 
‘nine years of age lives with an uncle, and an 
‘older brother who is in the show business and, 
‘though unmarried, permanently removed from 
‘the family. The only ties, therefore, namely, 


5 




































his immediate family, were broken and Fred 
was set adrift. At his older brother’s sugges- 
tion (brother 25 years old), Fred joined him 
in conducting his show booth and stayed with 
his brother about six months. At the end of 
six months his brother gave up the booth as no 
longer profitable, and Fred was again set adrift. 
He held several jobs for short periods, includ- 
ing two months as waiter in a cafe at................ 

Fred’s six years of schooling did not make 
as much of an impression as the six years of 
schooling that James had received. He writes 
poorly and is not very bright. He has less 
initiative and self-reliance than James and has 
less experience in taking care of himself. He 
is more truly adrift than James, despite the 
fact that he has relatives near by. His attempts’ 
at stealing represent not so much planned un- 
dertakings as following the path of least resist- 
ance. There appear to be no positive bad quali- 
ties in his make-up, but he needs support and 
oversight. 

It seems clear that in the cases of both James} 
and Fred strong, permanent, watchful parental 
care has been lacking. Their course of life was 
determined by accidental environment that led 
in one case through half the United States in 
an exciting life of high spots, and in the other} 
case it led from loose family environment to the 
breaking of all ties and being set adrift. There 
is no indication in either case that a loose o1 
criminal life is intended or preferred. They are 
both still children and need help, control, anc 
supervision. I cannot in any way bring myselip 
to regard them as criminals in any sense of thel 
word. | 


POSSIBLE DISPOSITIONS 


The following disposition of the above case’ 
seems possible: ; : f 

1. Commitment to a term on the roads or ti} 
penitentiary. This would result in comminglin; 
of the boys with mature criminals and vagrant. 
under the most demoralizing conditions. Ther 
is a consensus of opinion that this would be th? 
most successful means of assuring a permanen a 
life of crime for boys of this age under suc} 
circumstances. ) 





2. They might be turned loose with a repri- 
mand. In that case the boys will fail to learn 
the lesson that they need, and would, moreover, 
be again set adrift and would almost as cer- 
tainly get into a life of crime as under the first 
method. 


38. They might be committed to a modern re- 
formatory for boys of this type or placed on 
full probation, as that word is now understood 
in modern penology. The State of North Caro- 
lina possesses neither such reformatory nor 
such a probation. This method, therefore, is 
not feasible. 


4. Sentence might be suspended in accord- 
ance with the common-law right of the magis- 
trate, with the imposition of certain conditions 
and restrictions which would control and help 
the boys while permitting them to earn their 
‘own livelihood and escape both the stigma and 
the destructive association of prison life. 


| Should your Honor choose to dispose of these 
two boys in a manner similar to that described 
as possibility No. 4, I should, as County Super- 
tendent of Public Welfare, be glad to offer my 
services in any way compatible with my duties. 
According to the law, supervision of cases of 
this type does not technically come within my 
jurisdiction as related to the Juvenile Court and 
Probation. However, my wider duties as the 
welfare officer of the county permit me to offer 
the following type of assistance: 


1. I could and should be glad to undertake 
aiding the boys in obtaining employment and 
lodging. 

2. I would attempt to find one or two men 
who would assume the responsibility of keep- 
ing friendly supervision over the boys. 

3. I could endeavor to get them in touch with 
wholesome means of recreation. 

4, Should the court impose upon the boys, as. 
yne of the conditions of the suspension of sen- 
ence, requirement of refunding losses sustained 
yy owners of the stolen goods, I would under- 
ake to collect such restitution from the weekly 
vages of the boys and require them to report 
Oo me as often as the court desired. 


7 






5. I would undertake to notify the court if | 
the boys failed to make good in order to enable | 
the court thereupon to make effective the sen- | 
tence suspended upon conditions. 

6. I would undertake to discover and utilize | 
any available sources of assistance in reclaim- 
ing the boys, such as, for example, relatives, | 
friends of good reputation, church affiliations, 
etc. 


Yours truly, 


County Supt. of Public Welfare. 





| UNIVERSITY OF N.C. AT CHAPEL HILL 

MINT 
00043605900 | 

FOR USE ONLY IN 

THE NORTH CAROLINA COLLECTION 





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